Tongue-holder for mouth and throat operations



(ModeL) 1 D. GENESE.

I TONGUE HOLDER FOR MOUTH AND THROAT OPERATIONS.

No. 374,122. x Y Patented Nov. 29, 1887.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DAVID GENESE, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

TONGUE-HOLDER FOR MOUTH AND THROAT OPERATIONS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 374,122, dated November 29, 1887.

Application filed March 8, 1887. Serial No. 230,124.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID GENEsE, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, have invented new and useful Improvements in Tongue-Holders for Month and Throat Operations, of which the following is a specification.

The administration of nitrous oxide for the extraction of teeth presents several difficulties, in that the tongue swells, the jaws close spasmodically, often rendering the antesthetic useless, and excessive hemorrhage after the first extraction renders operations difiicult and often causes vomiting from involuntarily swallowing blood, and, besides, in dental surgery the saliva in the mouth frequently overflows therefrom, soils ladies dresses, and, further, the collection of such saliva is a serious objection in operating on the teetha s in filling tl1en1--and in other month operations.

The object of my invention is to avoid the above-mentioned objections; to make operations in the mouth more convenient and clean; to siphon off the saliva from the mouth as rapidly as formed; to hold the tongue entirely away from the gum-margin, and thereby expose the teeth and roots to view, and to refiectgreat light over the mouth.

The invention also has for its objects to provide novel means for depressing and holding the tongue for the use of surgeons in spraying medicated vapors upon a patients tonsils or surroundings of the throat to carry away the fluid rapidly as it falls,and thereby permit the surgeon to use a larger quantity of the medicine undiluted by the saliva and prevent the fluid being involuntarily swallowed, at the same time giving light, preventingthe tongue from obstructing the use of the spray, and enabling the latter to be kept in operation a muohlonger time by reason of the saliva be ing siphoned off as rapidly as it accumulates.

To such ends my invention consists, essentia1ly,in a tongue depressing and holding plate provided with a siphon or conduit for carrying off the saliva or fluid as rapidly as it no cumulates in the mouth.

The invention also consists in a tongue hold (Model) The invention further consists of other fea tures,which will be hereinafter described and claimed, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of the device; Fig. 2, a vertical central sectional view of the same; Fig. 3, a detailbottom plan view of the tongue-holding plate; Fig. 4, a transverse sectional view of the same, and Fig. 5 a view showing the device applied to the mouth of a patient in connection with a bulb or syringe for starting the siphon action.

In order to enable those skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will now describe the same in detail, referring to the drawings,where the numeral 1 indicates the tongue depressing and holding plate, which, as here shown, is approximately elliptical in shape, and on its upper surface, 2, is slightly concaved and highly polished to form a mirror for lighting up the mouth. To the under side of the plate is secured a saliva or fluid conduit in the form of a tube, 3, having perforations 4 for the entrance of the saliva or fluid thereinto, this conduit connecting at the front end of the plate with a main tube, 5,which extends laterally, as at 6, and then downwardly, as at 7, at right angles, or approximately so, to the plate. V

I do not confine myself to the saliva-conduit in theform of a tube attached to the plate, as it may be otherwise constructed and arranged. A sleeve, 8, is arranged on the main tube 5, and is provided with an attached laterallyprojecting concaved rest orbearing,9,formed to fit or bear against the underside of the chin of a patient, said sleeve having a set-screw, 10, for holding it in any position to which it may be moved along the main tube 5, whereby the chin-rest and tongue-holding plate maybe adjusted to and from each other for applying the instrument to the patient and for adjusting the same to varying sizes of jaws. The main tube 5 may be connected by a tube, 10, with a hollow elastic bulb, 11, or equivalent, having valves 12, whereby to draw the saliva or fluid from the mouth into the conduit 3,

tube 5, and bulb, from which it will be expelled; but I do not confine myself to this contrivance, as other means may be employed to draw out the saliva or fluid from the mouth.

The instrument is applied by placing the chin in the chin-rest and the plate on the tongue, and then moving these parts, the one toward the other, so as to cause the plate to de press and hold the tongue of the patient in the desired position, after which the parts are held'in their adjusted position by tightening up the set-screw. This constitutes a siphon tongue depressor and holder for keeping the tongue away from the instruments while operating in the mouth. The polished or mirror face of the plate illuminates the fauces or posterior portions of the throat, and by the conduit and tube all moisture secreted in the month during the operation is carried or siphoned off, thereby avoiding the delay which arises by the necessity of the patient frequently expectorating.

The device when used in connection with my speculum, for which application for patcut was made by me October 25, 1886, Serial No. 217,154, will enable the dentist orsurgeon to perform most of the operations in the mouth without the use of the ordinary rubber dam or similar cumbersome appliances that have hitherto been necessary during dental or otheroperations on the oval cavity.

In operations of cleft palate the instrument is invaluable, since it prevents involuntary swallowing of blood, which nauseates the patientandimpedesthesurgicaloperation. Since the saliva and blood are siphoned off by this instrument, it permits the operator to syringe the mouth of the patient to remove clots, and a most important and valuable feature is, that any root or tooth flying from the forceps or other instrument cannot be swallowed while the tongue is held, thus avoiding the danger of foreign bodies getting into the air-passages and causing death.

The siphon action of the device prevents overflow of saliva spoiling ladies dresses during dental operations and economizes time in difficult operations on the lower teeth.

In treating diseases of the tonsils and surroundings of the throat the fluid resulting from medicated vapor sprays is carried off as rapidly as it falls, so that the surgeon can use the spraying-instrument a greater length of time and employalarger quantity of the medicine undiluted with the saliva. The tongueis so held that it cannot interfere with the manipulation of' the spraying-instrument and the fluid cannot be swallowed;

To remove the moisture from the gum-margin outside, I may mount a common T-head on the bar 6, arranged to slide'thereon and communicating with the air passage. On each branch of the T-head a small rubber tube would be mounted, which would follow the general direction of the marginal tube 3, but would lie outside upon the margin of the gum. The function of such tube is similar to that of the tube 3,as it serves to remove the accumulation of saliva and other secretions from the external gummargin.

Having thus described my invention,what I claim isl. An instrument for dental and other mouth or throat operations, consisting of a tongue depressing and holding plate provided with a saliva or fluid conduit, and a rest for bearing against the chin while the plate holds the tongue, substantially as described.

2. The combination, in an instrument for dental and other mouth or throat operations, of a tongue depressing and holding plate, a conduit for siphoning off the saliva or fluid from the mouth, and a ehin rest,the said plate and rest being adjustable, the one toward and from the other, substantially as described.

3. The combination of a tongue depressing and holding plate, a perforated conduit on the under side thereof connecting with a pendent tube for carrying off the saliva or fluid from the mouth,and a chinqest adjustably mounted on said pendent tube, substantially as described.

4. The tongue-holder having its top surface concaved and polished to form a mirror, in combination with a siphoning device for carrying off the saliva or fluid from the mouth, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aitix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

D. GENE-SE.

\Vitnesscs:

G. Evn'rr REARDON, THOMAS BEALMEAR. 

